Chapter 49: Priestess Yuan: Try Me.
Once Priestess Yuan finished speaking, the faces of the tribe members who were sneering at Ruan Chanchan blushed in shame. Priestess Yuan had been kind by not saying their names, but she certainly was talking about them. After all, ever since Ruan Chanchan came here with Xie Daiyu, they had been targeting her by calling her a fool or whatnot.
However, they were not trying to hurt anyone. If anything, they were—
What? Trying to save Ah Man? But just as Priestess Yuan said, Ah Man was going to die anyway. Even if they stopped her, what difference would it make?
As they pondered over this little thought, the tribe member soon realised that stopping Ruan Chanchan didn’t do them any good, nor did it do any good for Ah Man. They were just used to treating her like she was not worth anything. Once something became a habit, they simply couldn’t get rid of it.
When Priestess Yuan saw that no one was saying anything, she sighed and then turned to look at Ruan Chanchan before softly saying to the girl, "You can treat Ah Man, right? Go ahead. I will be taking responsibility. If something goes wrong, then I will pay it with my life."
As soon as she finished speaking, the air subtly changed, and everyone turned to look at Priestess Yuan with a shocked look on their faces. How could they not? Priestess Yuan was just as important as Leader Xie. While the power that Chief Xie held allowed them to be a member of a tribe, the life force of the chief of the tribe was connected to the sigil or mark that was magically imprinted on their skin.
This mark was like their identity (ID card) in the beast world. If the chief died before he or she could pass their power to their heirs, these sigils would disappear with them, and the tribe members would be abandoned.
Just like the chief of the tribe, the priestess was just as important. The presence of the priestess meant that the tribe had not been abandoned by the Beast Goddess and that they were still showered with blessings. And if a tribe’s priestess died, then the other tribes would rush forward to kill them all.
This was because the priestess of a tribe was like a mascot. She was a living proof of the heavenly protection of the Beast Goddess. If she were gone, then it meant that the Beast Goddess had abandoned them? So, how could a tribe abandoned by the Beast Goddess completely be allowed to survive? It had to be killed and cleaned.
After all, these tribes were considered evil in the eyes of other tribes without the priestess.
If the priestess died, then how would their tribe survive? The other tribes would massacre theirs!
"Priestess Yuan! What do you mean by those words? How can you say such a cold-hearted thing? You know what would happen to our tribe if something happened to you," said Chief Xie. She just could not understand why everyone was speaking up for Ruan Chanchan all of a sudden; what kind of spell had she done on them?
Priestess Yuan glanced at Chief Xie and said to her, "Then you will not stop Ruan Chanchan from saving Ah Man."
Chief Xie wanted to refuse instinctively, but the second she saw Priestess Yuan looking at her, she had no choice but to purse her lips and agree. She glanced at Ruan Chanchan and said to her, "You can go ahead and do what you think —is right."
Chief Xie didn’t trust Ruan Chanchan, but she had to show some respect to Priestess Yuan. Since the woman had spoken, she could only let Ruan Chanchan take over.
When Ruan Chanchan heard her reluctant tone, she rolled her eyes. There was no need for Chief Xie to show such a look. She wasn’t exactly begging for this chance either. If anything, it was given to her—no, getting burdened by it was the right term.
She scoffed and then turned to look at Xie Daiyu before saying to him, "Moon Mist, Red Toxin grass. Fast."
Since this mer was the one who had caused trouble for her, she was going to use him as her lackey. Who asked him to throw her into this mess without asking her if she was willing?
Under Ruan Chanchan’s glare, Xie Daiyu felt a bit troubled and uneasy. This was the first time someone had glared at him like this; even his mother would treat him with caution because he was her darling son. And yet Ruan Chanchan, who had no substantial presence in the tribe, was glaring at him like he was a child who had done something wrong.
Forget it.
Since she was willing to help Ah Man, he would listen to her. It was his fault for neglecting her requests when she said that she didn’t want to let others know about her skills, but what was he supposed to do in such a situation? Only Ruan Chanchan was the one who could help Ah Man.
Xie Daiyu turned around and walked away, while Ruan Chanchan turned to look at the woman who was lying on the ground. Her eyes were filled with a hint of complex emotions as she looked at Ah Man. Maybe others might think that she was being too cruel, but Ruan Chanchan had seen a lot of people die in front of her. Because she was paying for the mistakes that she had committed in her first life, she had lost almost everyone who was dear to her.
Thus, she couldn’t feel sorry or aggrieved about the life that was about to be lost. Her first thought was to protect herself.
Looking at the mer who was holding the baby in his arms and staring at her with confusion, distrust, but a lot of hope, Ruan Chanchan turned her head away. Damn it, don’t look at her like she was a hero because she wasn’t. She was a villain dressed like a hero.
"You—carry him."